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Good morning, Fearless readers:
We hope you had a relaxing Labor Day weekend!
In this week’s Fearless e-newsletter, you will find:
- Reader responses on women in politics and policy from our 2025 survey on women's and gender issues.
- A column from Vanessa C. Marcano-Kelly on supporting a human future of work.
- In the headlines: Mercy College of Health Sciences appointed Amanda Zurface as its inaugural vice president for mission and campus culture.
- A break from the news: A look at Mariah Romano, founder of FarmBaby in Lucas, Iowa.
- Lots more!
— Macey Shofroth, Fearless editor
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Survey: Respondents share thoughts on gender representation in politics, policy
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COMPILED BY MACEY SHOFROTH and EMILY BARSKE WOOD
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In our Fearless annual survey, respondents shared their thoughts on the state of women in politics. Getty Images.
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This coverage is from the Business Record’s annual survey on women’s and gender issues as part of our Fearless initiative. While nonscientific, we believe the results of this questionnaire illustrate current opinions about Iowa women’s equity in and outside of work. Read previous coverage here.
We asked: In the past five years, do you feel women have made significant progress in obtaining gender parity in politics?
Overall average:
Yes: 42.5%
No: 57.5%
Percentages of just respondents who identify as women or nonbinary:
Yes: 36.5%
No: 63.5%
Percentages of just respondents who identify as men:
Yes: 55.1%
No: 44.9%
We asked: What, if any, policy or legislative changes do you think would help women?
Local level:
“Create better housing opportunities.”
“Affordable child care.”
“Programs and funding for women-owned businesses, education training.”
“Eliminate DEI.”
“Better access to reproductive care, including birth control and abortion care.”
“Invest in affordable child care solutions in rural communities where child care options are lacking.”
“Many potentially helpful policies are not possible due to restrictions on local control established by the state, but anything that can reduce household costs is helpful (child care, housing, etc.).”
“Elected women need to stand up against their male counterparts, and male voters need to support the movement.”
“Maternity leave paid for everyone at a liveable wage.”
State level:
“Right to make health care decisions.”
“The strict laws on abortion are hurting women. I know women who have had issues obtaining a medically necessary abortion as a result of the current legislature and got ill as a result.”
“Require equal parental leave, and stop the abuse of maternal disability to hide paid leave given to only one parent. Pass state FMLA requirements for smaller companies and potentially more recent hires (especially for insurance at employee rates).”
“Enhanced child care support, reversal of anti-DEI policies, reversal of policies that limit local control.”
“Protections for women’s sports and spaces against predatory men, school choice, encourage women to look at the skilled trades as an alternative career path.”
“Better support for child care, reinstate gender balance for boards and commissions.”
Federal level:
“Implementing paid family leave for all parents, equal pay legislation, protections for reproductive rights, workplace discrimination laws, measures to address violence against women.”
“Reinstate Roe v. Wade.”
“Funding science and research, funding education, funding everything being slashed right now.”
“Support legislation that supports caregivers and enhances the quality of life for older Americans in the final chapter of life.”
“Support public schools and LGBTQ.”
“Stop rolling back DEI.”
“Tax billionaires instead of the middle class. Look at the tax payments based on gender; women are not in the billionaire status, so find ways that help lower- and middle-class women – when you do it, it will help all.”
“Federal student loan limits and/or forgiveness, family leave.”
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CAREER PATHWAYS & ADVANCEMENT
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Commentary: 4 ideas to support a human future of work
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BY VANESSA C. MARCANO-KELLY, GUEST COLUMNIST
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Over the past two or three years, we have been seeing, at dizzying speed, how the discourse and dynamics around work, efficiency, productivity and automation have been developing. A lot of us are either using, learning or asking questions about artificial intelligence, and imagining new solutions for the future of work. As women in the workforce, it is of utmost importance for us to stay ahead of the curve in the face of any types of change in the future of work.
When we collectively dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic, studies show that it was women who saw a lot of their work disrupted or somehow shifting, sometimes for better and others for worse. When some parts of the workforce were able to shift to remote work with no disruption, women with children had to juggle the demands of professional work, domestic work and their families’ educational support. A large portion of essential workers who were not able to go remote at all were women, and numbers also show that the frontlines of health care were often staffed by women.
Women had to fight every step of the way for our current place in the workforce, and we will continue to have to do so, especially as innovation and the evolution of work advances. Yet one of the things that makes our workforce unique is the ability to maintain the human essence and connection. With this in mind, I would like to share four ideas to support a human future of work.
Solidarity and collective action: In an individualistic society such as the United States, it seems that we have forgotten about the concept of solidarity and how important it should be to us as workers. If we scratch the surface and get out of our bubble a bit, we can realize that the future of work in this country depends on our grasp on solidarity. Factory workers and skilled tradespeople worry about automation, corporate workers and creatives worry about AI. There are differences in the degree of difficulty and the toll our professions take on our bodies, but we shouldn’t let this divide us.
We must lean into our similarities to get back the control over our conditions of work. It’s up to us to see each other’s plight and speak out for better working conditions: fair wages, benefits for all, paid sick leave and family leave, a solid retirement, enforcing occupational health and safety (whether it’s ergonomics as an office worker or consistent water and heat breaks for people working outdoors). Speak to your co-workers, speak to people outside your profession, see yourself in others, cultivate solidarity and unite for a human future of work.
Let the chicken pieces fall: I’ve interpreted several times for the United Food and Commercial Workers union. They do hard work and without their labor, we’d be in trouble. One of the things that stuck with me during those meetings was “letting the chicken pieces fall.” As the meatpacking line speeds increased, workers would move faster to keep up, sometimes injuring themselves, for the sake of production. Nobody told them the line speed would increase, but they adapted at the expense of their bodies, mental health and future livelihood.
The speed increased again. One stressed-out woman couldn’t keep up much longer and dropped some of the chicken pieces. Other workers, too, recognized they shouldn’t continue injuring themselves for conditions they never agreed to. The company noticed the wasted chicken pieces and soon enough, line speeds slowed down for a while. Work and life keep getting more demanding, but we must know our value and our boundaries. Are you going to put your body and sanity at risk or will you let some chicken pieces fall?
¿Qué me cuesta? Back in 2015, when I worked for a government entity, I had to sit at the front desk once a week and provide information and assistance to people facing difficult situations in their lives. Some of them, though, were just trying to get child care assistance. My co-workers told me constantly not to deal with the child care clients because that wasn’t in our scope and those clients had to use the provided phone line. So the child care clients would sit there, wasting upwards of 45 minutes on hold, giving us the stink eye or yelling in frustration.
One day, I was working the desk alone and a Spanish-speaking child care client, two kids in tow, asked me for help. They needed to change some information to keep getting their assistance. “¿Qué me cuesta? (What’s this costing me?),” I asked myself. Instead of making them waste 45 minutes and endure the stink eye, I took down their information, wrote an informed note and put it in the appropriate mailbox to get it taken care of. It was the little power I had, it took about 5 minutes and it made a huge difference for that person. Can you find the flexibility and the power in your rigid processes to just be a fellow human and spare the grief? ¿Qué te cuesta?
What works for you: I have a poster in my office that says “Never not working,” and honestly, that’s not the best advice. I was in Istanbul in 2022, replying to emails at ungodly hours and my brother called me out on this ridiculous behavior. Since last summer, I’ve been protecting my weekends and my vacation time in a way that works for me. I do the prep work to delegate or accept I’m letting some business go, and organize to unplug for real during my vacation time. On weekends, I don’t really check email.
But I once unplugged for six weeks in 2021 and had a four-hour anxiety attack before flying back from Austria to Des Moines because I had not checked on any work at all. That was an unpleasant experience that nobody wants again. So, on longer vacations, I choose one day and set aside 30 minutes to review and prioritize. If it can wait until I return, let it be, and if it’s of critical importance, I reply. But honestly? Unless you’re a doctor, a lawyer or the president – it all can probably just wait.
Vanessa C. Marcano-Kelly is a native of Caracas, Venezuela. She is a class A certified court interpreter in the state of Iowa, ATA-certified Spanish translator, and owner of Caracas Language Solutions, LLC. She is also a strategist in the global brand and experience content studio at Principal. She is the board president of the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice. Marcano-Kelly was named a Business Record Forty Under 40 in 2024. She lives in West Des Moines with her husband, Michael, and their dog Kal-El.
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“IF YOUR ACTIONS CREATE A LEGACY THAT INSPIRES OTHERS TO DREAM MORE, LEARN MORE, DO MORE AND BECOME MORE, THEN YOU ARE AN EXCELLENT LEADER.”
DOLLY PARTON
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Mercy College of Health Sciences appoints inaugural vice president for mission and campus culture. Mercy College of Health Sciences announced it has appointed Amanda Zurface as its first vice president for mission and campus culture, a new role overseeing campus ministry, mission integration and student affairs. In this new role, Zurface will provide leadership for campus ministry, mission integration and student affairs, advancing initiatives that foster belonging and holistic well-being. She will also play a key role in shaping an institutional culture that reflects the college’s core values and Catholic heritage.
The Iowa Clinic expands OB/GYN services. The Iowa Clinic announced it is expanding its OB/GYN services with the addition of Dr. Alicia Toncar to its Women’s Center. This addition aims to ensure women and families across the state have continued access to high-quality, local obstetrics and gynecologic care when nearly one-third of Iowa’s 99 counties are classified as maternity care deserts. Toncar, a Central Iowa native who completed her residency in California, will provide clinical, surgical, and hospital-based care. “I’m looking forward to caring for women in the community that helped shape me, and to being part of an organization that truly prioritizes exceptional patient care,” Toncar said in a statement.
Deanna Strable elected Principal board chair. Principal Financial Group announced Deanna Strable, president and CEO, has been elected chair of the board by the company’s board of directors, effective Sept. 2. Strable succeeds Dan Houston, who will conclude his service on the board of directors after serving as chair since 2016. Strable was named president and CEO of Principal in November 2024 after a more than 30 year career, including senior and executive leadership roles leading business strategy and operations.
Democrat Catelin Drey wins Iowa Senate special election, breaking Republican supermajority. Democrat Catelin Drey won the special election for Iowa Senate District 1. Her victory flipped a Republican-held seat and breaks the GOP's supermajority for the first time in three years. Drey will serve the remainder of Republican Sen. Rocky De Witt, who died of pancreatic cancer in June, which ends in January 2027, according to the Des Moines Register.
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UI student, entrepreneur Dasia Taylor showcases NERD STEM Box on Good Morning America (Corridor Business Journal). Gymnast who sparked abuse inquiry into coach says she ‘needed to speak out’ (Cedar Rapids Gazette). Gatorade to female athletes: We want to see you sweat (Sports Business Journal). Lisa Cook broke ground at the Fed, before attack by Trump (New York Times). Congo has astronomical rates of sexual violence. Now victims have lost access to care (New York Times). After Hurricane Katrina, moms built new lives by building homes (The 19th).
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“That’s farmin’, baby.”
Those are words to live by for Mariah Romano (pictured above), who founded FarmBaby in 2023 in Lucas, a small town between Osceola and Chariton. With more than a decade of farming experience, she’s seen the chaos agriculture can bring and credits her “que sera, sera” approach for keeping her sane as she’s built her farm from the ground up.
“The land itself was raw when we bought it,” she said. “There were no water lines, no electric infrastructure.”
The magnitude of the project was daunting for Romano, who handles most of the labor herself. She sees her land as a blank canvas for her dream of managing her own farm.
Read more about Romano's project.
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At its core, Fearless exists to help empower Iowa women to succeed in work and life. We believe that everyone has a story to share and that we cannot progress as a society unless we know about one another. We share stories through featuring women in our reporting, featuring guest contributions and speakers at our events.
We are always looking for new stories to share and people to feature. Get in touch with us!
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